But the Sunday Times has established that Queen Sandile’s payment as a ghost teacher began in 1989, following an agreement reached between the king and the then Ciskei president Lennox Sebe.

An investigation by the department into the arrangement has uncovered that when the queen started her “job”, she was offered about R4500 as a gross salary. “Her salary at the end of April/May was way above R12 000 a month,” said an official who declined to be named. When details started to emerge about the queen being remunerated in 2001, Eastern Cape traditional leaders and the traditional affairs department distanced themselves from the matter.

When asked why the queen was entitled to a salary, Burns-Ncamashe said this was an arrangement dating back to the Sebe era.

Commenting on behalf of Qwase, Pulumani said: “At this time the department must regrettably decline to comment on this very sensitive matter.”Sunday Times